299. Editorial Note
Between October 5 and 13, the United Nations Security Council met on almost a daily basis to continue discussion of the Anglo-French item, “Situation created by the unilateral action of the Egyptian Government in bringing to an end the system of international operation of the Suez Canal, which was confirmed and completed by the Suez Canal Convention of 1888”, this item having originally been inscribed on the Security Council agenda on September 26. Of the eleven member nations of the Security Council, six of them (Belgium, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Yugoslavia) were represented by their Foreign Ministers. Egyptian Foreign Minister Fawzi was also present for the debate. Secretary Dulles was in New York for most of this period and served as United States Representatives during the meetings. Papers kept by the United States Delegation for this period are in Department of State, Conference Files: Lot 62 D 181. They include daily chronologies, memoranda of conversations, copies of telegrams sent between the Mission in New York and the Department of State, position papers, Security Council documents, and verbatim minutes of the six open and three secret meetings of the Security Council which were held during this period. The procès-verbaux of the open meetings (735th, 736th, 737th, 738th, 742d, and 743d) are printed in United Nations Security Council, Official Records, Eleventh Year.
At the 735th meeting of the Security Council on October 5, the Representatives of France and the United Kingdom submitted to the Security Council a draft resolution, the operative paragraphs of which provided that the Security Council would: (1) reaffirm the principle of freedom of navigation in accordance with the Convention of 1888; (2) affirm the necessity for safeguarding the rights and guarantees that all users of the Canal enjoyed under the system upon which the convention was based; (3) endorse the Eighteen-Power Proposals for a settlement; (4) recommend that Egypt negotiate on the basis of these proposals; and (5) recommend to Egypt that, in the interim, it cooperate with the Suez Canal Users Association. (U.N. doc. S/3666)
This draft resolution had undergone several revisions and reflected changes suggested by the United States. On September 29 in telegram 123 to USUN, the Department of State had forwarded to [Page 639] the Mission suggested modifications for the British-French draft resolution. (Department of State, Central Files, 974.7301/9–2956) On October 4 in telegram 304 from USUN, the Mission had sent to the Department a text of the revised draft, which incorporated certain of the changes. (Ibid., 974.7301/10–456) On October 5, the Mission transmitted to the Department the text of the draft, containing additional revisions, which had been the basis of discussion at a meeting that morning with Lloyd and Pineau, and a summary report of that meeting, during which additional changes had been made. (Secto 1 and Secto 2; both ibid., 974.7301/10–556) Later on October 5, the Mission informed the Department of last-minute changes in the text. (Telegram 309; ibid., 330/10–556)